All Forum Posts by: Garan Kama

@Perry Farella Wow, I’ve never heard of the HomeStyle loan before. Will definitely have to look more into it.

So I've been lurking, reading books, and listening to a ton of audible books and podcasts.  I took the plunge and paid for pro to be able to start using the calculators.  Here's an update on the steps I've recently took toward my goals of FI through real estate.  

1. I've narrowed down some markets and sent emails (similar to @David Greene's) to realtors in Raleigh, Nashville, Boise, Kansas City, Indianapolis, and Cleveland area.  I'm waiting to hear back from them and am in touch with a realtor and lender in Cleveland.  

2. I've started inquiring on rates for a HELOC on my primary residence in California for costs which would require more capital then what I have saved up.

3.  I've reviewed and re-calibrated mine and my girlfriends finances to get a better idea of how much more I can save (about half my monthly income) by being more cognizant of unneeded spending and decided to work more overtime to spend on the things we want to do or to super charge my/our investment savings.

Here's where I'm having a harder time and what I'll be trying to overcome next.

1.  Narrowing down which market(s) are best for me to start in. 

2.  I'm apprehensive due to a possible pullback on housing prices due to higher interest and other macro economic factors. 

3.  Making the right connections 

4.  Actually going to meetups and networking 

Other than that, I'm still trying to learn and soak in as much as I can.  I know I need to take action a little more, but i'm just trying to keep lining up and knocking down dominoes.  I appreciate everyone on this website for selflessly giving knowledge and encouragement.  Just a little update and pseudo journal for me to look back on.

@Alan Hicks Have you thought about refinancing into a conventional loan then taking out a HELOC on the equity? This would free up your VA loan to buy another NMD house, rent out your current house, and have access to the HELOC cash for investments/rehabs? I refinanced my VA loan into a conventional loan a few years ago but haven’t found another property to use my VA loan on again since I live in SoCal. I’m also calling around to see what rates would be on a HELOC for my current home. Happy hunting!

@Deodat Ramdat I’ve also recently been looking at the Cleveland area due to an acquaintance living and working as a realtor in the area.  Despite the stats that people normally look at (pop. Growth, job growth, diversified job sector, etc).  I’ve been seeing many people on BP saying that the rental market is still strong.  Good luck in your endeavors there and I hope we can both find deals for whatever strategy we are employing! 

@Tim Lin I do both. I listened to David’s book before I bought the hard copy. I currently read David’s book while also listening to it again while doing workouts or cardio sessions. I also listen to a lot of BiggerPockets podcasts and have a running list on the books that guests recommend. If a book is repeated a few times I look for it on audible and rely on the reviews to tell me wether it’s good in audible format or not. I also look at the price of the audible book and if it’s more expensive then the monthly subscription, I’ll use the monthly credit for it.

@Adam Keffer I am also thinking about taking a HELOC on my home as well to have ready in case I need it. It sounds like @James Roberts has the plan laid out for you. I am just getting started as well, but I’m just shooting some thoughts out that I’ve had on the subject. I’m looking to invest out of state and am trying to narrow down different cities to BRRRR SFH as outlined in David Greene’s book. I’m looking at a number of different markets, but will choose the one that allows me to just get that first deal, but also allow me to use cash reserves for the 20% down payment and most, if not all, of the rehab costs. If I don’t have enough cash to pay for the complete rehab, I’ll use part of the HELOC to pay for it so that my interest payments will be lower. I’d guess the best goal is to use cash reserves and HELOC if needed, to do an all cash buy on a distressed home, rehab it in the hopes the ARV will afford you to recoup all your capital+ to leave no money in the deal, have a cash flowing property, and pay off your HELOC without the seasoning period that would be required if you financed through a lender to begin with. Following your thread to see what the discussion will bring. Good luck!

@John Williams I freed up my total VA entitlement by refinancing into a conventional loan. My rate went up by a 1/4% at the time, but with rates being there they are now, I’d definitely take a look at that first. Of course, if you don’t need the full entitlement ($484k) then you don’t have to go the conventional route. The funding does go up as someone stated earlier. I’m going to start my disability paperwork now to see if I qualify to get the fee waived.

I agree.  Regulation and implementation is key. 

Great thing about tokenized assets is that you can sell them at any time provided there’s enough liquidity.  You can also buy percentages of shares, invest in tokenized REITS, etc.  The sky is the limit for innovation.  It will all depend on the business model and how the blockchain’s ledger technology and smart contracts are implemented.  There is a project that has macro and micro fundamental analysts on many markets and their token is like a prepaid key that gives you access to the report or access to gain exposure to automated trading bots that acts upon the different research.  So many interesting projects out there.

Yeah,  eager to see what kind of business models are derived by this innovation.  There are quite a few companies doing different things with blockchain.  Lending/selling equity in your house, borrowing against your equity via tokenization, asset backed tokens (apartments, condos, in a building). The list goes on.